That's a weird timeline you've got there. I had to look those players up because I hadn't heard of them, but Milik and Zivkovic both arrived at Ajax a full year after Jozy left AZ. Zivkovic played for Jong Ajax for 3 years and then got 7 first team games with 1 goal before moving on. Milik definitely did better but had nothing to do with Ajax until they got him on loan from Bayer Leverkusen. Neither of these players had anything to do with whether or not Jozy could have played for Ajax after AZ.
Sometimes you hear of older players trying to undercut younger players so they can keep their "spot" as long as they possibly can.Not Jozy. He's been the most vocal supporter of the younger generation and now he's trying his hardest to help them to their potential. https://t.co/PTsoKcibQY— Daniel (@DanielSmith1022) January 28, 2021 The way Bradley and Jozy have been treated by the USMNT fanbase over the last half decade will go down as one of the most embarrassing moments in American soccer history...
Why embarrassing? It's quite normal to be critical to veteran experienced stars if they have failed or faltered. Not to mention when managers universally rely on them rather than giving young options an opportunity to shine.
What does that have to do with the player? It's misplaced anger. Players want to play and it's a rare guy that walks off while he's still wanted.
They do it to everybody on these boards. Every legend eventually reaches a decline, and the inevitable backlash. McBride, Pope, Reyna, Donovan. They all got that treatment. The difference with Bradley is that he's gotten it from Day 1 due to unfair nepotism claims. Altidore, by the way..........................was reportedly the only player that went over to apologize to the fans after the T&T WCQing loss.
Jozy is not ready to turn in his stars and stripes just yet. https://www.si.com/soccer/2021/01/27/jozy-altidore-usmnt-return-future-berhalter-world-cup “I think this is interesting,” [Jozy] said from Florida, where he’s the eldest member of the patchwork U.S. team preparing for Sunday’s friendly against Trinidad & Tobago. “In MLS and U.S. soccer, we love to call players like myself old. But if you look in Europe, some of the very best performers are older than me. And so, I just think that’s a very MLS and kind of a U.S. journalist’s mentality, this notion that I’m all of a sudden old, when [Robert] Lewandowski is 30-something.” “It’s been the greatest joy of my career to put on the national team shirt,” he said. “There’s disappointment and tough moments, but it's been the biggest pleasure for me. It remains that way, and those challenges happen. It’s how you bounce back from it, and how you respond as a soccer nation, as a federation and as individuals. It’s always been a great joy for me and that hasn’t changed today.”
I think the discussion around Jozy would be different if his performance in MLS had been better over the last year. The injury issues are real. The lack of production has been real. Jozy is only 31. He's not old. What I worry about is whether he's broken down or not. I have a helluva lot of respect for what Jozy has contributed to the USMNT over the past 15 years. The forward pool is building depth now, though. He has to beat out these youngsters that are gunning for his spot. Nothing is given. Consider that Jozy Altidore debuted for the USMNT in 2006 as a 16 year old. We had Cade Cowell at this January camp. Cade was BORN in 2003. Yikes. Caden Clark. Born in 2003. Ricardo Pepi. Born in 2003. I think we had our first 2005 debut in MLS this year.
I was actually surprised by the number of people who turned on Landon, some claiming he was fat or out of shape, just wildness.
I've said it before, I'm blown away that TFC or Jozy or the USMNT hasn't found the world's greatest hamstring therapist. All parties would be way happier if they get that under control. I'm not holding 2020 against him too much. He was good in 2019 and is only 31.
USMNT's Altidore out vs. Trinidad & Tobago due to injury, possible transfer The U.S. manager added that "a number of clubs" have expressed interest in Altidore. Sources confirmed the possibility he could be on the move, and emphasized the fact that the player's relationship with TFC -- and GM Ali Curtis in particular -- had reached a breaking point, and that he no longer wants to play in Toronto. Sources told ESPN that a considerable sticking point is the years and money remaining on Altidore's contract. Altidore signed a three-year extension in 2019 that runs through 2022. A source said the deal has a no-trade clause. According to the MLS Players' Association, Altidore's 2019 salary, the most recent year for which data is available, paid him $6.33 million in guaranteed compensation. One source told ESPN that an unspecified club in Liga MX had expressed interest.
I don't think so, aside from maybe Gignac (google says "His current contract with Tigres is of $4.5 millions per year")... maybe they (mistakenly) think Jozy will bring in lots of American viewers and sell merch? Maybe Toronto would pick up a chunk of Jozy's salary to get him off their roster? With Chris Armas replacing Vanney he'll probably want his own DPs and if they start pressing like NYRB how will Jozy (or Bradley!) fit into that...
1355655436049985541 is not a valid tweet id “Don’t believe everything you read. The devil is working overtime.” Ok
Should we believe direct quotes from Gregg Berhalter? Still don't understand why he's been described as having a great camp and now he's actually been injured and won't play. Then we get all this major club relationship breakdown nws from....the national team manager? Does this not seem odd?
You mean there were a bunch of USMNT fans who considered themselves to be the TRUE fans, who became enthralled with a charismatic blond leader, who told them everyone involved in the establishment was corrupt (except him, even though his son has ended up with a job everywhere he's worked, much more so than Mike / Bob Bradley)?
Bradley Jozy and Pozuelo I imagine that refers to the rumors that he doesn't get along with TFC's GM.
How so? Neither is/was/or should have been treated as a “legend” as another poster put it. They were average international players for mediocre US teams. Them being treated as untouchable legends held US soccer back for a decade. Klinsmann built the 2014 WC team around them and failed and failing to qualify in 2018 was in part due to this “play the veterans” mentality even when it was obvious they were either past it or lost the hunger. Bradley and Jozy’s sense of entitlement—that they are still owed the US shirt and to start—is staggering! F*@# ‘em.
When has Jozy EVER given any sort of statement indicating that he thinks he's "still owed the US shirt and to start"?
You want self-confident athletes who think highly of themselves, AND you want guys who want to represent the national team until someone has to physically rip the shirt off their backs... to turn that into a negative by calling it "Bradley and Jozy’s sense of entitlement" is just bizarre and idiotic. If Tim Howard is starting at goalkeeper for the USMNT in World Cup qualifiers despite being a mediocre MLS goalkeeper approaching age 40, you can blame the coaches (Klinsmann and Arena), and you can blame the next generation of goalkeepers for not being good enough (Guzan, Hamid, Johnson) to take the starting job, but you CAN'T blame Tim Howard! What do you want him to do, refuse to represent his country?
I flat disagree. We are fans, short for fanatics. We want to see a winning side. When we disagree with the guy who is coaching our team, we will speak up. When we see a guy who isn't able to do his job properly for whatever reason, we will speak up. Neither Bradley or Jozy have been able to do their jobs properly at the NT level for many years, for various reasons, but are repetitively called up, sometimes at the expense of who I or other may feel are better options. No player deserves a pass, even Messi, when they put on the National Team crest. If you are stinking up the joint, you are going to get some flack from the fanatics. While they may have been lightning rods for criticism, had they played better, they wouldn't have come in for the criticisms that they receive.
Jozy was effective in 2019, he didn't play a game in 2020. When did the many years of Jozy being ineffective start? Name the better options that weren't called up to play striker.